NBA Totals Pick: Kings at Hornets

Both the Charlotte Hornets and Sacramento Kings are noted for being high-scoring teams with porous defenses. With that in mind, we’re offering a projection on the Hornets vs Kings totals, along with our point spread pick. The over/under on this game is a hefty 230.0. Is that high for these two teams? We do think that in some ways, as of late, that over/under does look a bit bloated. But perhaps that’s just appearances and not reality. Here’s how we see the totals betting going as the Southeast Division Charlotte Hornets host the Pacific Division Sacramento Spurs.

Recent Performance

Here’s what we found in terms of basic scoring stats. Sacramento is averaging 114.7 PPG and giving up 115.4 PPG to opponents. Charlotte is scoring 112.0 PPG and giving up 111.8 PPG. None of those numbers look very promising for the over in our Hornets vs Kings totals pick. We did drill down a bit deeper.

In their last five wins, the Kings scored on average 111.8 PPG. Points allowed by Sacramento in their last five wins comes to 103.4. At the same time, in their past five victories, the Hornets averaged 110 PPG and allowed 97 PPG. Both of these models indicate the under. In their last five losses, Charlotte has allowed the winners 126.0 PPG. At the same time, the Hornets have scored 99.2 PPG. That tilts towards the under also.

One five-game history trend that looks promising for the over has to do with a Hornet win, when the Kings are giving up 122 PPG, and the Kings are scoring 112.8 PPG. Another configuration has the Kings allowing 122 points when they lose and the Hornets scoring 110 when they win.

As we compared and contrasted various recent totals, we found that more combinations yielded the under. Although the preference for the under was not by a huge margin, we still see, based on the stats regarding recent performances that the under is the right bet.

Edge: Under

Trends

In Sacramento’s last five games, the total has been under. In four of the Hornets’ last five home contests, the under has been the correct bet. However, when these two teams meet, they have tended to go over. In their last five games when Sacramento had played on the road against the Hornets, the total has gone over four times. Also, in five of the last seven times these two teams have met, the total has gone over in five meetings. Also, in four of the Kings’ last five road games, the total has gone over.

These two teams really seem to open up the court when they play. But will that happen tonight? In our Hornets vs Kings totals prediction, we see that possibility as being limited. Especially because the total is fairly high at 230. However, fair warning, the stats above indicate that the score could break through past the 230.0 mark.

Edge: Over

What We’ve Seen

There’s not a lot to stop the big scorers from putting points on the board. That could be the key to this contest. When these two teams met in Jan. 14, the Kings took down the Hornets 104-97 for a total of 101. Will they put up 20 more points tonight to get to the over of 230.0. The answer is, “yes,” they may actually do that. Although overall the Kings have played in some relatively low-scoring games, they have more times than not been involved in contests where more than 130 points were easily scored. The same is true for Sacramento. Still, the trend and predictors indicate tonight’s bet is under.

Edge: Under

Our Hornets vs Kings Totals Pick

Our Hornets vs Kings totals pick is going to be the under at 230.0. We can’t see both of these teams jacking up the score tonight. We think if any team will out a lot of points on the scoreboard, it will be Sacramento. But we envision the Hornets underperforming. Make sure you also read our spread pick on this Hornets vs Kings contest.

Summary Charlotte Hornets and LA Kings Totals: Under 230.0